If the flatscreen TV and the rest of the stuff in the living room wasn’t shaking so much, truckers might not be catching so much flak for traveling through a residential area in Mount Holly, N.C.
However, with homes vibrating, plenty of kids to be concerned about and a beat-up road, residents that live along a mile of Highway 273, or North Main Street, have complained so much about the tractor trailers that state troopers are taking a closer look, according to wsoctv.com.
And in some cases, they don’t like what they’ve found. By traveling on Highway 273, some truckers may be avoiding a nearby weigh station on Interstate 85. But there’s really no way to prove that—unless a trucker admits it.
Still, the North Carolina Highway Patrol suspects that some truckers are traveling the route to do just that. For two days, wsoctv.com traveled with troopers as they pulled over tractor trailers traveling that road, along with Highways 27 and 74.
“Troopers stopped a total of 16 trucks during the two-day period. Of the 16, one was put out of service for a flat tire and an expired federal inspection,” wsoctv.com reports. “Another truck also had an expired federal inspection tag. Two trucks were found to be overweight. A few others were sent on their way with warnings for an underinflated tire.”
Residents have been trying to get a law passed that would restrict some trucks based on weight. The North Carolina Department of Transportation told wsoctv.com that the rigs do not present a safety issue and that trucks with 53-foot trailers have been able to travel on North Main Street since 2009.
Mount Holly City officials say they’re not authorized to pass a weight restriction law and instead are hoping to hold a meeting that would bring all interested parties together to discuss the issue.
Road repair work on Highway 273, which includes resurfacing, is scheduled to begin this summer.
